Railing structure



June 12, 1951 H, LATHRQP 2,557,002

RAILING STRUCTURE- File'd Oct. 2, 1946 and the like.

railing frame. 7 means for assembling tubing which may be Patented June 12 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE RAILING STRUCTURE Harry D. Lathrop, Chicago, 111., assignor to The Lathrop-Paulson Company, Chicago, 111., a. corporation of Illinois Application October 2, 1946, Serial No. 700,613

This invention relates to a railing structure The invention is particularly useful in connection with a railing or guard for placement about chain conveyors or the like and for forming enclosures about areas.

An object of the invention is to provide a railing structure formed of. simple parts which may be readily assembled into a sturdy integrated A further object is to provide shipped in compact form to a place where the railing is to be erected, the assembly means permitting the parts to be brought together quickly bodiment, by the accompanying drawings, in

which- Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of apparatus embodying my invention; Fig. 2, a side view in elevation of a tie member or tie rod which may be employed to unite the frame parts; and Fig. 3, a transverse sectional View, the section beingtaken as indicated at line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

In the illustration given, I designates an upper horizontal tubular member, and II a lower horizontal tubular member. The members Ill and l I are designed to become the railing of the finished structure, and it will be understood that the railing may be formed of one, two or more horizontal members.

The tube I0 is provided with an opening I2 in its lower side, and the tube II is provided with a pair of aligned openings I3. It will be understood that the members Ill and II may be connected to adjacent tubes in the same plane so as to form a continuous rail or guard about any desired area.

Between the tubes I ll and I I, I provide a vertical tubular member I4. The member I4 is cut away at its top along an arcuate path to provide a recess receiving the upper tube ID. If the upper tube I0 is circular, the recess preferably is formed in an arc conforming to the outside curvature of the member I0. Similarly, the vertical member Id has a cutaway portion, as indicated by dotted lines I5, at its lower side so as to encompass almost half of the tubular member II.

Below the tubular member I I is a vertical tube I6 having its to portion cut away along the 2 Claims. (01. 256-65) line I1 to provide a recess receiving tube II. If horizontal tube II is substantially circular in cross section, the notch I! is preferably arcuate so as to conform to the curvature of the tube II. The lower end of the vertical member [6 is provided with a nut I8 having internal threads receiving the threaded end I9 of the tie member or tie rod j The upper end of the tie rod 20 is preferably turned'to form a locking headZ I, as shown more clearly in Fig. 1, and secured to the rod 20 below the bend is a ferrule 22. The ferrule 22 prevents the head 2| from extending upwardly into the tube Ill and thus maintains the lower threaded end IS in fixed position while nut I8 is being turned to tighten the rod within the frame work.

The nut I3 is preferably provided with a hexagonal or multi-sided head 23 so that the head may be effectively turned in the tightening operation. If the railing is joined to form a circular or rectangular frame, it is found that no additional support is necessary. However, if a complete frame of thisv sortis not assembled, it may be desirable to have supports extend along the frame, and one example of such a support is shown best in Fig. 3. The support comprises a pair of sleeve members 24 and 25 receiving the tube I6 and the ends of the sleeves 24 and 25 are bolted to a laterally-extending wing 26.

In the operation of the structure, the rod 20 is first inserted in position, as shown in Fig. 1, and is free of the nut H3. The vertical tube I4 is next placed in position by sliding it over the rod 29. The horizontal tube II is next placed in position by passing the rod 2! through the openings I3. Finally, the tube I6 is slipped into position over rod 20, as indicated in Fig. 1. The nut I8 is next placed in position and rotated so as to draw the rod 20 downwardly. It will be noted that the flanges 23 of the nut l8 engage the lower end of the tube I 6, and the rotation of the nut I8 brings about a clamping action, drawing rod 2!] tightly in a downward direction. The rod 20 thus becomes a means for integrating the various tubes into a compact rigid framework. If the support is to be employed along with the railing, the sleeves 24 and 25 are inserted about the tubing I6 before the nut I8 is placed in position and drawn tight.

The method of assembly described permits a railing to be assembled quickly and extending over long areas. Where the tubes In and I I are connected with other tubes of a continuous railing, a simple friction insert ring may be employed, or any other suitable means for securing the two rails together may be employed. If the rails should terminate, the ends of the tubes may be closed by suitable friction caps 21. It will be understood that many variations may be made in the type of structure employed. The tubes may be square or rectangular in cross section rather than circular and the parts illustrated may be of different configurations.

The structure is extremely simple in character, permitting ready assembly and also ready disassembly. When the parts are drawn together under the pressure exerted upon rod 21, it is found that the arcuate notches in the vertical tubes closely conform to the circular contours of the horizontal tubes In and H so that the resulting frame has the appearance of an integral structure and its rigidity is comparable to that of an integral structure. At the same time, upon the unscrewing of nut l8, all of the parts may be disassembled and packed for shipment in compact relation. The vertical members [4 and I6, together with the horizontal tube H, may be readily drawn off the rod 20, and the rod 20 may, by turning the same, be withdrawn from the upper horizontal tube I0.

While in the foregoing specification, I have set forth a specific structure in great detail as illustrating one embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that such details may be varied widely by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. In a railing structure, a plurality of substantially horizontal tubes, a plurality of substantially vertical tubes, said vertical tubes being aligned and where meeting said horizontal tubes being provided with a recess receiving the latter tubes, said horizontal tubes being provided with openings aligned with said vertical tubes, a rigid rod extending through said openings and having a turned locking end engaging the inner bottom wall of the topmost horizontal tube, a ferrule fixed to said rod at a spaced point below the 4 turned end thereof and engageable with the outer wall of said uppermost horizontal tube to prevent upward movement of said rod, said rod having a threaded lower end, and a nut receiving the lower threaded end of said rod and abutting the lower end of the Vertical tube.

2. In a railing structure, a plurality of substantially horizontal tubes, a plurality of substantially vertical tubes, said vertical tubes being aligned and where meeting said horizontal tubes being provided with a recess snugly receiving the latter tubes, said horizontal tubes being provided with openings aligned with said vertical tubes, and a rod extending through said openings and having a lower threaded end, the upper end of said rod being turned laterally and engaging the inner wall of the topmost horizontal tube, a ferrule fixed to said rod at a spaced distance below the turned end of the rod and engageable with the outer wall of said uppermost horizontal tube to prevent upward movement of said rod, and a nut equipped with a threaded shank received within the lowermost vertical tube and having a laterally extending flange receiving the bottom edge of the lowermost tube.

HARRY D. LATI-IROP.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 152,535 Warren June 30, 1874 381,289 Stephens Apr. 17, 1888 402,817 Gilbert May 7, 1889 648,749 Jennings May 1, 1900 960,340 Kimball June '7, 1910 1,070,8ll Kimball Aug. 19, 1913 1,464,305 Wilkey Aug. 7, 1923 1,8 i0,048 Michelman Jan. 5, 1932 1,918,607 Lindh July 18, 1933 2,150,651 Ewing Mar. 14, 1939 

